Flying Snow Divine Spear

The purple-robed man nodded to himself when he saw Dongbo Xueying's expression. The people of Yi Water City had even given Dongbo Xueying a nickname: "Spear Demon," meaning he was obsessed with practicing the spear! It wasn't exactly malicious, but it wasn't praise, either. Yet the purple-robed man had seen a great deal of the world and understood that beyond this place...

The true rulers of the world were the powerful—the astonishingly mighty Title-level experts, and even the transcendent beings.

Only those who truly practiced with such dedication had any hope of becoming such people.

So he was reluctant to offend anyone who worked that hard.

"Fine spears." Dongbo Xueying glanced over them. Just from the faint aura emanating from the weapons, he could sense their spirit—a natural rapport that came from spending every day with a spear.

All three spears came in two sections. They were too long to carry otherwise, and breaking them down meant they could fit in a weapons case. A full-length spear would be at least two meters long, making it far too cumbersome.

"Brother Xueying, let me introduce them. I personally went out and bought all three," the purple-robed man said.

"Sorry for the trouble, Count Quan." Dongbo Xueying nodded.

He usually couldn't be bothered with social niceties; most of his thoughts were focused on cultivation. But he wasn't so rude as to ignore them entirely.

"This black spear," the purple-robed man said, pointing to the weapon in the first case on the left. "It's called Black Cloud, and it's three meters and twenty centimeters long. It's one of the best-selling spears out there, and many nobles are willing to buy one. You can try it yourself to see what makes it good, Brother Xueying."

"Oh." Dongbo Xueying frowned slightly. This spear was too long for his liking.

He stepped forward, picked up the two sections, and quickly twisted them together until they locked into place.

Whoosh!

He swung it one-handed in a thrusting motion!

Dongbo Xueying held the spear, which weighed over a hundred pounds, in one hand and swept it straight out, its tip stabbing toward the distance. The tearing hiss as it split the air made the two maids nearby turn pale with fright.

The purple-robed man was secretly amazed. What strength! What spear technique!

"Too soft. Far too soft." Dongbo Xueying shook his head. "This Black Cloud spear is too long, and its shaft is too thin. When you thrust with it, the spearhead starts to wobble. Skilled fighters do want the spearhead to move, of course—but its movement must be completely under their control. It shouldn't wobble because the spear is too soft."

"Of course, for people who aren't skilled with a spear, thrusting with a spear over three meters long will make the tip sway so much that most people can't even follow it with their eyes. They'll get a hole punched through them before they know what happened. For nobles who don't bother practicing, it's a pretty good weapon."

Dongbo Xueying offered his assessment casually.

He had mastered the unity of man and spear at thirteen, and had now touched the realm of a Spear Technique Master. A single test was enough for him to understand a weapon's strengths and weaknesses.

For someone with poor spear skills, the Black Cloud spear was a good weapon. It could even make them much stronger.

But a skilled spearman wouldn't want it.

"Impressive, impressive! Ha ha, I've met quite a few genuine experts who've made their way through the world. They looked down on the Black Cloud spear too, even though it's popular with spoiled nobles." The purple-robed man pointed to another spear beside it, one with a dark purple shaft. "This one is called the Purple Blood Spear. It's the kind real experts use. It's two and a half meters long, with a shaft thick enough to fill your hand and an extremely sharp spearhead. It's made for killing. They say its dark purple color comes from years of blood soaked into the shaft."

"That's quite a story," Dongbo Xueying said with a smile as he picked up the Purple Blood Spear.

As soon as he took hold of it, a faint delight stirred in his heart.

Then he casually swung it.

Whoosh!

The spear whipped across the room, and a fierce gust of wind suddenly roared through the spacious private room. With a turn of the shaft, the sweep instantly transformed into a furious thrust!

The ease in Dongbo Xueying's every movement was something an ordinary spear expert couldn't match. The purple-robed man's opinion of him rose higher and higher.

"The force shifts smoothly," Dongbo Xueying said with a slight nod. "There's nothing wrong with the shaft, and the spearhead is indeed sharp, thanks to the alchemical array."

It was a good spear, and it suited him.

"Let me introduce the last one." The purple-robed man pointed to the remaining spear.

Dongbo Xueying looked over. By his reckoning, this one was his favorite. Its shaft was silver-gray, speckled all over with dots like snowflakes, and he could faintly sense its sharpness.

"The other two are first-tier alchemical weapons. I came across this one by chance, and it was identified as a second-tier alchemical weapon," the purple-robed man said.

"Second-tier?" Dongbo Xueying and Zong Ling both stared at him in surprise.

They had found a second-tier alchemical weapon in Yi Water City?

"It's cold all over. Its maker called it the Flying Snow Spear," the purple-robed man explained. "Its greatest feature is that when you use spear techniques, countless snowflakes appear around it, distracting your enemies!"

"Let me try it." Dongbo Xueying picked up the two sections, joined them together, and began testing the spear.

The purple-robed man was a little nervous.

Alchemical weapons usually had some special advantage. They might be faster, sharper, or perhaps wreathed in flames.

This Flying Snow Spear only produced snowflakes to distract an enemy. But those snowflakes couldn't fool true experts; they could easily tell the spearhead from the illusion. That was why this second-tier alchemical weapon had been left unsold.

As for the weapon's origins...

Count Quan had once encountered an old beggar while doing business abroad. He had felt the beggar was no ordinary man and provided him with food and drink. Three years later, before leaving, the beggar fired up his forge and made a spear. "This is the Flying Snow Spear. It should be enough to repay you for all the food and drink." Then he left.

At the time, Count Quan had thought the Flying Snow Spear must be some peerless divine weapon. After testing it, he learned that it was indeed a second-tier alchemical weapon, but it had no strengthening effect. Still, it was worth far more than the food and drink he had provided.

Whoosh—rip!

Dongbo Xueying wielded the silver-gray spear, trying out more than a dozen moves before stopping. His expression was calm, but he was thrilled inside.

A fine spear.

Now this was a truly fine spear.

Even someone who had mastered the unity of man and spear might not recognize its true value. For the past few years, Dongbo Xueying had been practicing his punches, trying to make his strength perfectly unified. Now he had touched that level, and that was why he could perceive the spear's subtle qualities.

But he couldn't say so! He still had to bargain. He really couldn't afford a second-tier alchemical weapon!

"Not a bad spear. It certainly lives up to being a second-tier alchemical weapon." Dongbo Xueying looked at the purple-robed man. "But aside from its snowflake illusion, I don't feel it has any other special effects. Alchemical weapons usually have some kind of special effect. Maybe they're enhanced by magic, or made sharper. Why does this spear have none of those? As for distracting enemies, can't true experts tell the snowflakes from the spearhead?"

"I'd guess it was classified as a second-tier alchemical weapon because it could withstand Title-level combat," Dongbo Xueying continued. "For those of us who aren't that strong, it's not as good as a first-tier alchemical weapon."

A first-tier alchemical weapon could withstand combat below the Title level.

But the power of a Title-level battle was earth-shattering, and ordinary first-tier alchemical weapons could easily break apart. When Dongbo Xueying unleashed his strength, he could already reach the Silver Moon Knight level in an instant. It wouldn't be long before his power reached the Title level. A first-tier spear wouldn't last him much longer. That was another reason he wanted the Flying Snow Spear.

Of course, the main reason was the subtle mystery contained within it.

"But it's still a second-tier alchemical weapon, and I can tell you like it," the purple-robed man said.

"Name your price," Dongbo Xueying said.

"Thirty thousand gold coins!" the purple-robed man blurted out.

Dongbo Xueying smiled.

In truth, he felt even more helpless. By now, the entire Dongbo Clan had only a little over fifteen thousand gold coins left—and that was with Uncle Zong helping them out. The clan's accounts had been empty for two years. Dongbo Xueying had burned through the money with nearly ten years of daily medicinal baths, starting when he was six!

The medicinal baths cost five thousand gold coins a year. Nearly ten years had cost them fifty thousand! At first, Dongbo Lie and his wife had thought their son would become a knight at around ten, and then he wouldn't need the baths. His Battle Qi would nourish his body and help it recover. Who could have guessed that Dongbo Xueying wouldn't break through until he was nearly sixteen?

"How much for the Purple Blood Spear?" Dongbo Xueying immediately turned to look at it.

"That one only costs five thousand gold coins," the purple-robed man said quickly. "It can't compare to the Flying Snow Spear. The Flying Snow Spear is a second-tier alchemical weapon. It may not have a supporting effect, but it is second-tier, at least."

"In combat, what matters is how useful it actually is," Dongbo Xueying said. "I'll offer ten thousand gold coins at most."

The two haggled.

"Eighteen thousand gold coins! I can't sell it for less," the purple-robed man said helplessly. He was selling it so cheaply for several reasons. First, the spear really was rather unremarkable. Second, the old beggar had given it to him outright, and all he had spent was a little on food and drink. Third, dozens of spear experts had already examined it, and none had been willing to pay much for it. Someone had once offered eighteen thousand gold coins, but he had refused. Now that he was back in Yi Water City, even getting that much seemed unlikely.

"Fine." Dongbo Xueying didn't want to haggle any further. He understood the spear's true value. "But I can only pay eight thousand gold coins upfront. I'll owe you the other ten thousand and pay within three months."

He really had no money left!

"You want to buy it on credit?" The purple-robed man stared at him in surprise.

"I didn't bring that much with me today. I didn't expect you to have a second-tier alchemical weapon," Dongbo Xueying said calmly. He was powerful now, and earning ten or twenty thousand gold coins wouldn't be difficult. With this spear, he would be even more formidable.

"Fine, it's a deal! Ha ha, I trust the Dongbo Clan. We'll just write up an IOU," the purple-robed man said.

"Do you need collateral?" Dongbo Xueying asked.

"No need." The purple-robed man was generous. He was quite willing to build a relationship with Dongbo Xueying.

"Uncle Zong," Dongbo Xueying said.

Zong Ling hadn't said a word from beginning to end, leaving every decision to Dongbo Xueying. Now he took a thick stack of banknotes from inside his robe, pulled out two, and handed them to the purple-robed man.

Then Dongbo Xueying wrote an IOU for ten thousand gold coins.

And just like that... the Flying Snow Divine Spear was his!

"You just haven't met a Spear Technique Master. Otherwise, how could this have ended up in my hands?" Dongbo Xueying's heart raced with excitement as he picked up the weapons case. He didn't know that there wasn't a single Spear Technique Master in all of Qinghe Prefecture! Plenty of people were skilled with weapons, but few practiced spear techniques. Mastering the unity of man and spear was already impressive. Becoming a master?

It was far too difficult!